Hi all! Looking to get into trumpets. I've played around with some in the past and I think I'm ready to make a purchase on one. Not looking to break the bank just yet. I'm a mouth call and pot call guy. Just looking to learn a new call and add to the arsenal. Anyone have any suggestions on where to start? Or any calls for sale?
*I have looked on here and in the classifieds I just want a little insight first!
Thank you!
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Brian Lawter has some nice trumpets on Facebook for $65.
The call you learn on will go a long way with the learning process. Choose wisely.
My suggestions would be Brian Mero or Lee Chadwick.
Contact Ralph Permar and get on his list for either a classic 45 or 45 trumpet. His Delrin trumpets are all consistent in sound / tone along with all his wood combos.
I got a Misfire from Lee as my first trumpet. I got it in the mail on a Wednesday and called in 3 toms to the gun on that following Saturday. Me and my wife doubled and let the other one putt off.
His trumpets are definitely easy to run, and in a couple three days of practicing you will be able to make some pretty believable sounds on it
My first one was from Greg Gwaltney, who's here on the forum. He made me one in short order, which was fantastic. Clay Townsend also makes a fantastic call and usually has some available on his website, including a cheaper version. I would get one and start playing it a few minutes every day. I play mine while driving to work.
Getting one from some of the renowned makers has proven quite the challenge, with waiting lists a year or more for the most sought after trumpets. I agree with Davis as well, that there is a difference in playability amongst the various trumpets you will try. Start with a solid one you can get without too long of a wait, and maybe get in line for another on Mr Permar, Anthony Ellis, or another's list. I have a few from various makers now after getting into these calls 3-4 years ago, but I still hunt with some of the first ones I learned on.
Good luck, to me there's nothing like calling turkeys with these trumpets!
Quote from: mountainhunter1 on May 08, 2025, 08:23:39 AMQuote from: davisd9 on May 08, 2025, 06:50:40 AMThe call you learn on will go a long way with the learning process. Choose wisely.
My suggestions would be Brian Mero or Lee Chadwick.
I own calls from Lawter, Mero and Mr. Lee. Like their calls, and like the three men who make them even better as they are all good guys. But - have to agree with Davis here - especially on the Misfire from Mr. Lee. Very good one to start the process with. A misfire will almost play itself.
The great thing about Brian Mero if you decide to start with him - his Trumpets are close to being a tank. He leaves a lot of wood on his calls. You could beat a coyote to death in the woods with his call and probably not hurt it. Most trumpet calls should last a lifetime regardless, but I have no doubt that Mero's will.
Lawter's call can be a big chunk of wood too. I have some from all the one's mentioned and they are all great trumpets. As for availability, I think you'll get one from Lawter quicker.
There's no beginner yelper. Is there a beginner pot call? Idk why turkey people
treat trumpets with such high reverence. It's a turkey call, the fancy ones will cost you more, and call in no more turkeys than a plain Jane. Of course some are "better" than others, but by less of a margin than you might realize.
Now that I spoke my opinion on that, you are Bayouturkey guy so you of course have to get a KP, which is easier said than done. So while you wait for that, I agree with Greg, get on RP's list, only I'd personally get a 1917. A wingbone from EZ or another good maker is another excellent choice imo.
Quote from: Zobo on May 08, 2025, 06:36:02 PMThere's no beginner yelper. Is there a beginner pot call? Idk why turkey people
treat trumpets with such high reverence. It's a turkey call, the fancy ones will cost you more, and call in no more turkeys than a plain Jane. Of course some are "better" than others, but by less of a margin than you might realize.
Now that I spoke my opinion on that, you are Bayouturkey guy so you of course have to get a KP, which is easier said than done. So while you wait for that, I agree with Greg, get on RP's list, only I'd personally get a 1917. A wingbone from EZ or another good maker is another excellent choice imo.
How internals are done matter. Trumpets are most like mouth calls, nothing like pot calls. Rough internals take more work to run. How you draw air depends on what call maker you prefer. Even an experienced player sometimes have to tune themself to a call they are not used to running. Playing style depends on what internals you look for. For a person to get good on a trumpet, they must match the call to how they draw, the sound they want, and practice, practice, practice.
I think a Mero Kingwood is about 130 dollars give or take. I believe that a Chadwick Rosewood is going to be 150-160 or there about. Unless you get a Lawter which runs for around 65-70 shipped - you are not going to beat Mero's price by much.
Another one - and I personally am a fan of his calls for ease of playability - is Todd Black of Black Dot Calls. His calls are very beginner friendly. Good guy and he is at Unicoi if one wants to check him out in January. I personally like his calls as good as Mero or Chadwick.
If I were recommend someone starting out, I would suggest they start with a good wingbone or cane call to learn on. Easier in my opinion to learn on. Then go to a trumpet. Tony Ezolt makes good ones
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Quote from: wchadw on May 09, 2025, 09:02:42 AMIf I were recommend someone starting out, I would suggest they start with a good wingbone or cane call to learn on. Easier in my opinion to learn on. Then go to a trumpet. Tony Ezolt makes good ones
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I agree. My first was a cane yelper from Ronnie Caudill. He was very helpful in learning how to run it. I probably should have stopped with that one before going down the trumpet buying rabbit hole.
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Learn on what you intend to use. Once you have comfort expand and experiment.
I disagree with just buy yourself a cheap one, even the cheap ones cost money and if you decided in 6 months I don't care for these trumpets your return in investment / trying to sell it become very difficult.
Buy yourself a good one that most people like / call builder and if you don't care for it, you can pretty much sell it and get your money back,. Learning on a good one will help you enjoy using it and playing it.
Some good builders are on the forum... Do some research and make a good decision in what you buy.
IMO ...
Quote from: Zobo on May 08, 2025, 06:36:02 PMThere's no beginner yelper. Is there a beginner pot call? Idk why turkey people
treat trumpets with such high reverence. It's a turkey call, the fancy ones will cost you more, and call in no more turkeys than a plain Jane. Of course some are "better" than others, but by less of a margin than you might realize.
Now that I spoke my opinion on that, you are Bayouturkey guy so you of course have to get a KP, which is easier said than done. So while you wait for that, I agree with Greg, get on RP's list, only I'd personally get a 1917. A wingbone from EZ or another good maker is another excellent choice imo.
Yea a beginner doesn't go full bore into something, starts off modest then works his way up. I have a few lower end pot calls that I've learned from. Over the years I've purchased higher end calls that produce different sounds. Yes it's a turkey call but what's the difference from mouth calls? Do they all sound the same? No. Even though they are all latex stacked ontop each other. Don't want to spend $500 on something that may not work for me.
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Since this season is over, I would recommend saving up for a few months and getting a nice call. One can be obtained for 150-250.. depending on which one you get. A lot of solid recommendations given already. Some other good makers listed in the first thread in this section. My personal favorites, and worth the wait and money, are KP, Permar (45), Padgett, AGE, and Black Falcon.
Quote from: BayouTurkey29 on May 10, 2025, 09:57:14 AMQuote from: Zobo on May 08, 2025, 06:36:02 PMThere's no beginner yelper. Is there a beginner pot call? Idk why turkey people
treat trumpets with such high reverence. It's a turkey call, the fancy ones will cost you more, and call in no more turkeys than a plain Jane. Of course some are "better" than others, but by less of a margin than you might realize.
Now that I spoke my opinion on that, you are Bayouturkey guy so you of course have to get a KP, which is easier said than done. So while you wait for that, I agree with Greg, get on RP's list, only I'd personally get a 1917. A wingbone from EZ or another good maker is another excellent choice imo.
Yea a beginner doesn't go full bore into something, starts off modest then works his way up. I have a few lower end pot calls that I've learned from. Over the years I've purchased higher end calls that produce different sounds. Yes it's a turkey call but what's the difference from mouth calls? Do they all sound the same? No. Even though they are all latex stacked ontop each other. Don't want to spend $500 on something that may not work for me.
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I pretty much agree with you, you don't have to go full bore and spend 500.
For under 200 you got some good recommendations:
like Mero and misfire. A Davis from Lonzo is an extreme bargain, Irving Whitt just had a nice Blackwood for sale 175, D Slaton and Greg G from the forum for a bit more but worth it. Andy Terrell and Kenneth Mullins I like as well. A Jordan style horn tends to cost less, RP and Lapp and Clay Townsend perhaps.
All very good choices imo and will call in birds if you do your part and practice and learn. But I wouldn't call them beginner's trumpets, just more affordable.
Quote from: BayouTurkey29 on May 07, 2025, 11:25:51 PMHi all! Looking to get into trumpets. I've played around with some in the past and I think I'm ready to make a purchase on one. Not looking to break the bank just yet. I'm a mouth call and pot call guy. Just looking to learn a new call and add to the arsenal. Anyone have any suggestions on where to start? Or any calls for sale?
*I have looked on here and in the classifieds I just want a little insight first!
Thank you!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I would look at Brian Lawter. I just bought one from him and it was 71$ shipped. For the money, it's a great yelper. With being said, I've messed with them long enough and had enough different ones to know that it's not going to work for me, so I'm going to gift it to a friend that is wanting to try one. Absolutely nothing wrong with them, just the mouthpiece shape and size, the way his lip stop is made, and the size of the exhaust end just doesn't work for me as well as I like. But once you learn to play one you will be able to play any of them by figuring out how to manipulate them. I'll send you a pm
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I've had this conversation lately with @mountainhunter1. I ran his wingbone all season and finally picked up a trumpet for a change after weeks of hunting the bone. The trumpet is so much easier to run - once you can control a wingbone. My recommendation to anyone getting started is buy a well tuned wingbone first and stick with it until you are hunt ready with it. You can easily run any decent trumpet after that with very little practice or effort. Others may disagree with this approach, but I stand by it based on mine and other friend's experiences.
Quote from: bwhana on May 13, 2025, 01:25:32 PMI've had this conversation lately with @mountainhunter1. I ran his wingbone all season and finally picked up a trumpet for a change after weeks of hunting the bone. The trumpet is so much easier to run - once you can control a wingbone. My recommendation to anyone getting started is buy a well tuned wingbone first and stick with it until you are hunt ready with it. You can easily run any decent trumpet after that with very little practice or effort. Others may disagree with this approach, but I stand by it based on mine and other friend's experiences.
Agree!